One Last Time
by I Am The Krow
Summary: Act Three Of CJ's Adventures. The whole gang has scattered. And the final act in CJ's journey will be over. The clock runs out for the Cooper Gang as they face one last enemy before the fate of an old friend is decided. To hell we march.
1. Chapter 1: Shattered Friends

One Last Time: The Final Act In CJ's Story

Chapter One: Shattered Friends

"Prisoner 483, you've got mail." a prison guard handed a wolf-like figure an envelope.

"The name's CJ, asshole." the wolf growled, snatching the envelope out of the guard's hands. The guard pretended not to have heard and went on his merry way. CJ sliced open the mail with one of his claws and opened it. A letter. From who?

_Dear CJ,_

_I hope you've been holding up well. Getting sent to prison for a life sentence must not be the most fun thing in the world. Hope the recent events haven't shocked you too much. We were all surprised when we saw it. The thing I'm writing this letter to you about is we have to get the gang reassembled. Major things have gone down since my last letter. Eight months passed, and a new enemy has risen from the shadows. We'll need you, too. We'll be coming to get you sometime after you get this letter._

_See you soon,_

_Bentley _

CJ stared at the words. Past events had truly been shocking. Sly had left the gang, stayed with Carmelita, and had actually gone as far to join Interpol. French, Spanish, German, Japanese, nobody knew for sure. Murray had joined up for a race curcuit and was winning money like crazy, after finishing his Aborigine training. Bentley and Penelope had gotten married and had their own secret headquarters, fully established with a brand new Cooper Vault after Sly's family's last one had gone down with Dr. M's island, although Sly had retrieved a lot of the loot. The Guru, a new character CJ had learned about through the communicator provided by Bentley, had gone back to Australia. Dimitri had become a celebrity deep-sea diver. Panda King and Jing King were still in China, Jing King never marrying after the whole ordeal with General Tsao. Hard to believe the rooster could control a damn dragon.

And CJ? Well, here's a little flash back before he had been incarcerated in America:

_"CJ? You done picking the gate yet?" Sly asked, keeping watch for the wolf._

_"Yeah. Tick, tick, tick, and click. We're in." CJ pulled open the gate, sliding in with Sly following him. A cool breeze ruffled through the trees of the villa._

_"So, who was this contact we were meeting? Marty Whatsit?" Sly asked Bentley through his communicator._

_"Marty Halplin. Codename for him is "Streaker". Or have you forgotten already, Sly?" Bentley retorted._

_"So, why did you decide to rejoin the team CJ? Weren't you back home, taking it easy?" Sly turned back to CJ while they were sneaking through the villa toward the contact._

_"Life is too boring without my friends." CJ said simply._

_"That's it?"_

_"Yeah. What else could there be? Besides me not having seen you guys in forever?"_

_"Alright, alright, you made your point. Don't get all stuffy."_

_"There's the contact. Streaker is at designated point and we are making descension. Operation: Dragon's Claw is in play. Let's go, Sly." CJ zipped down the wall through the window. A silver wolf stood leaning against the wall._

_"Hmm. A silver wolf, eh? This should be good." Sly muttered to himself. CJ slid off the roof and walked up to the silver wolf._

_"Streaker." CJ said. The silver wolf finally turned towards CJ._

_"Well, well, well. Another wolf, hm? What is it you want?" Streaker smirked._

_"You know what we want. Information on the criminal known as "Dragon's Claw." CJ said, getting irritated._

_"Ah, yes. That is a strange one. Well, information is hard to get on him. He vanishes faster than the wind on a hot day. Hmm...DC is usually located out on this island. Uncharted, except for my orginization's tracking skills. He's a master thief. Most likely better than the Cooper raccoon over there." Streaker handed CJ a map and scoffed at Sly. The raccoon had apparent anger on his face. CJ looked at him. The anger was understandable. Insulting one's family was usually grounds for a fight._

_"Okay. Thanks for your time. Here's that thing you wanted." CJ held out a small pouch full of coins to the silver wolf._

_"That's alright, mi amigo. NOW!" Streaker shouted. CJ and Sly looke around. A spotlight shot onto them._

_"You two-faced bastard!" CJ spat at the silver wolf._

_"Si, mi amigo. DC sends his regards." Streaker vanished inbetween the buildings._

_"Damn!" Sly got shot at and jumped back. CJ got shot in the leg and went down._

_"Go, Sly! You have the information and the map, now get out of here!" CJ shouted holding his leg._

_"Not without you." Sly grabbed CJ while the shots from dozens of shock pistols rained down all around them. He went a few feet before getting buzzed and dropped the wolf._

_"Go. It's alright." CJ waved Sly off. The raccoon reluctantly grabbed the map, stuffed it into his pouch and ran back to the van. CJ stood up as best as he could. The shots rained around him. He walked forward into the hail and dropped as he was struck down to the ground and paralyzed. _

And that whole event leads us to here. CJ sitting in a cell, his friends and allies scattered like rats, and he was needed once more.

"Ben-Man. Ringtail. The Murray. And the rest of the gang. I'll be there." CJ muttered to himself.

The final journey had begun.


	2. Chapter 2: Unity

One Last Time

Chapter Two: Unity

CJ sat in his cell, and waited.

Hours had passed. And still no sign of Bentley or Murray. The only thing he could do was sit in the bed and listening to the guards ramble on. He was about to lay down in his bed and sleep when the lights flickered and died.

"The hell?" one guard said.

"It's the blasted generator. I'll go fix it." another guard said. He went a few steps before a large fist crashed across his face, dropping him instantly.

"What? Who's there?" the first guard pulled a baton out of his belt and tip-toed forward. A small green dart whizzed forward and exploded in his face, spreading green gas over him and incapacitating him. He fell against the wall and slunk to the floor. CJ waited to see if the attacker or attackers were friendly, but he could already guess who they were.

Bentley and Murray walked up, Bentley holding a flashlight toward CJ's cell.

"Long time, no see, partner." the turtle said.

"If that isn't the truth." the wolf stepped back as Bentley sat a bomb at the foot of the cell bars. His friend hit a detonator, blowing the bars apart and giving entrance to CJ. The wolf stepped out. Murray dropped a duffel bag at CJ's feet.

"I think these are yours." the pink hippo said. CJ opened the duffel bag and pulled out a black hoodie, freshly mended, blue jeans, and black boots.

"And this also belongs to you." Bentley held out something. CJ looked up after replacing the jumpsuit with his fresh clothes. His jaw dropped.

The turtle held his scythe, the same one he had used back in Aaa and Ooo for over a year and a half. He took it and ran his finger along the blade at the top. From the moonlight, it glistened like a diamond. The jet-black staff looked just as great. It was in amazing condition, despite all the dust, scratches, and blood that once covered it.

"Where did you get this, Bentley?" CJ asked.

"We didn't get a good glimpse, but it looked like a teenage boy and a dog. He dropped it on the threshold of the hideout and they ran off as soon as Murray saw them."

_Finn and Jake. That sly dogs._ CJ thought, belting on the weapon.

"How'd you guys get in here?"

"We flew here by helicopter, and we went straight for the genereator via the service tunnels."

"Well, I'd say that your entrance didn't give us much option to take this slowly. We need to get to the rooftop, right?"

"Yes, and I agree. The guards will most likely be focused on the inmates escaping to deal with us."

"I think we should stop rambling and get movin'!" Murray interjected. CJ and Bentley nodded. The trio bolted through the hallways full of guards and inamtes battling each other to the rooftop stairway. A few guards broke from the throng and blocked their way. CJ drew his scythe and blocked their batons. He pushed up, swung out, and smacked a gguard in the chest. He jumped and kicked another in the temple, throwing another over his shoulder and curb-stomping him in the stomach. He looked back toward his friends and motioned to the stairway. They ran up to the door, onto the helipad, and across the roof to the promised helicopter, which had the Cooper Gang callsign emblazoned upon it. Penelope started the vehicle up while the others belted in.

"Up we go. Next stop, Australia." the female mouse said as she pulled up on the control stick.

* * *

_Half an hour later..._

CJ recollected his last time speaking with Finn and Jake before leaving Ooo as the helicopter buzzed over the landscape.

* * *

_The wolf walked out the door, a duffel bag slung over his shoulder. Finn and Jake ran after him._

_"Hey, wait a second! CJ, I thought you said you couldn't go back because of the way you looked. Why are you going back there?" Finn asked, grabbing CJ's shoulder._

_"I just have to, Finn. Every time I look around, something's always there that screams at me to go back. It's my destiny. I can feel it." CJ stared at the ground, speaking lowly._

_"But, how are you going to live, man? If people wouldn't accept the way you look, which I think is pretty stupid, then how are you going to live there?" Jake asked._

_"I'm like the shadows. I can blend in and not be noticed by people. Keep my head down, hood up, things like that. I'll be fine. I might not be around here for awhile, so say goodbye to Bubblegum, Marceline, and the others for me. Bye, guys..." with that final note, CJ turned around and walked through Ooo's grasslands one more time before ascending through the tunnel to his original home. _

* * *

Then, how he had rejoined the Cooper Gang a few months later...

* * *

_CJ walked through the streets in the dead of night. The night had a cool breeze, so he decided to take a stroll and enjoy it. He heard struggling down an alleyway, and went to see what was going on. Some young punk with dark brown hair was slugging a smaller kid against the wall of the alleyway. CJ jogged up and spun the guy around, punching him in the jaw._

_"Why don't you pick on somebody your own size, buddy?" the wolf shot. The kid tackled CJ to the ground and punched his head side to side. CJ bucked him off, kicked him in the back of the head, and pounded the back of his head into the ground. Desperate, the kid elbowed CJ in the groin. The wolf fell over, dazed. The kid resumed slugging his opponent across the face. He was yanked off and knocked out by a slender figure who had a bushy tail._

_The figure held out his hand to CJ._

_"You okay, partner?" the person said with a familiar voice, pulling CJ up. The wolf squinted to get a better look at the person._

_It was Sly._

_"Sly? What are you doing here?" the wolf asked._

_"Looking for you. The gang had another heist we wanted to do, and I came to see if you were interested in helping out." Sly explained._

_"Well, uh...sure. One more heist couldn't hurt. It'll be nice to spend some time with you guys. I'm in."_

* * *

And in due time, someday he would go back to Ooo. But first, his life's sole objective was to focus on this last heist with his friends. Penelope glanced back at CJ.

"Something wrong back there?" she asked. CJ looked up, then back out the window.

"Fine. Don't worry about me." the wolf answered.

"Just checking on ya." Penelope said back. Bentley rolled over to CJ.

"Okay, CJ. Do you know where Sly might be? We still haven't found him since that last letter I wrote to you." the turtle said.

"You're asking me? I've been sitting in a prison cell for the last eight months, in case you forgot. How would I know?"

"All I asked for was an educated guess. Not an exact location."

"Alright, alright. Well, since he's with Carmelita, he might be back in France, Spain, or America, but those places would be too easy. You said in one of your letters he didn't want to be found, so what's one of the last places we'd think to look? My answer: Britain."

"Are you sure? "

"I'll be damned if he's on the moon."

"Alright. Britain it is."

* * *

The group travelled across the globe, collecting other members of the Cooper Gang: The Guru in Australia , Dimitri in France, and Panda King and his daughter, Jing King, in China. There was only one more person left to find. The last crucial element needed for the heist to undermine Dragon's Claw.

Sylvester James Cooper.

CJ and the rest sat in the planning room at the hideout, thinking of how they would draw Sly out in the Britain Interpol station. They had confirmed his presence there due to a an arrest picture of him and Carmelita carting away a robber they'd caught together.

"Okay, so we know where he is. How do we get him to come out and play?" CJ asked.

"Snatch and grab?" Murray asked.

"No, that wouldn't work. We'd have the whole Britain Interpol police force on our tail plus Carmelita, and you know how she is when she's angry." Bentley disagreed.

"Why don't youse guys go in there and bust up the place?" Dimirti suggested.

"Although I like it, it's too risky." CJ said.

"What if we were to set up a fake robbery?" Panda King suggested.

"Alright, what did you have in mind?" Bentley asked.

"Cooper will be eager to prove himself, so it's pure logic that he will assume the arrest."

"Then it's settled. Who's all going?" Bentley asked the assembly. Everyone in the room shot their hands up.

"Let's go make trouble!" CJ said with a grin.


	3. Chapter 3: Sneak Attack

One Last Time

Chapter Three: Sneak Attack

The Cooper Gang stood assembled atop the Britain Interpol Station rooftop.

"Alright, now for a quick check-up, let's review the plan. Dimitri, you'll go into the sewer aqueducts and set off the water in the building. In the confusion, Jing and Panda King will knock a hole in the roof, allowing CJ and I to find Sly. If we can manage to get him to come with us, it'll be smooth sailing to Dragon Claw's takedown. And let's not forget, Penelope has our back with her RC chopper and car. Let's do it, guys!" Bentley said, pointing to each person in turn.

"Dimitri's gonna drop those water pipes like bad habits! Watchawakai!" Dimitri jumped into the water valve, using his trademark battle cry. Bentley linked up with the camera in the purple lizard's water goggles.

"Alright, we have a visual, Dimitri. The pipes should be in two rights, one left, and then another right." Bentley directed. Dimitri did as told and was making the first left when his goggles-cam went fuzzy and a dark silhouetted creature with glowing red eyes snagged the lizard around the leg with a gnarled, gray claw that was reminiscent to a lobster's. Dimitri struggled then let loose two harpoons from his harpoon gun. The creature didn't even flinch.

"What the hell is that?" CJ asked.

"Dimitri, get your ass out of there!" Bentley yelled into the comm link. Dimitri shot the creature in the eye, which made the creature release its hold. He flailed around and swum away.

"Man, that damn thing had a death grip!" he gasped as he looked behind him. The creature had vanished.

"Dimitri, get moving before that thing gets to you." CJ said.

_**You will all perish...**_

A voice in CJ's head spoke, sending stars into his vision and making his head pound, forcing him to hold his head. The black wolf stumbled backward and forward, trying to regain his focus.

_**Prepare to die...**_

Several dark figures came out of nowhere through what CJ could see through squinted eyes. They attacked with lightning-quick speed, overwhelming his friends before they had a chance to prepare. One that looked like him shrouded in shadows kicked him in the gut repeatedly, faster than a martial artist would have done so, then clocked him in the face with a brutal uppercut. The voice in his head released its hold over him as he hit the ground. While he coughed out blood, a fuzzy vision came into his head of Dimitri being dragged away by the creature. It looked like a giant angler fish, with the bright light sacs on its body and the light hanging from its forehead. All the wicked teeth kept making Dimitri look away while he screamed. The vision disappeared as CJ felt himself being lifted by his doppelganger. He felt a fist slam across his face. He spun and was met with a kick to the jaw. He remained standing, finally choosing to attack.

"Bout time..." the doppelganger muttered with a grin. It had his voice. CJ struck quickly with punches. His strikes were easily dodged, the look-a-like leaning back and forward like a tree swaying in the wind. It ducked another punch and socked CJ right in the eye, only angering him. He spun, launching off a spinning back kick to the look-a-like. He caught him in the chest, knocking him back a few feet. While CJ's leg lingered in the air, the look-a-like caught it, spun him around and tackled him. It jumped back up and stomped on CJ's chest, knocking the wind out of the wolf. CJ kicked back up, holding his chest. He ran forward with a yell, going at it again, striking with even more speed. He scored several times making the look-a-like's wicked grin disappear. It kicked at CJ's head, but the wolf blocked it with a forearm, knocked the other leg out from under, and dropped an elbow on the doppelganger's chest. It kicked back up. They came at each other simultaneously, each punch colliding together before the doppelganger jumped back and stood there.

"We will finish this another time. Farewell, faker." the doppelganger leaped off the roof to another and disappeared. CJ was about to jump after the abomination, but thought better of it. If that fight had progressed much further, the fight would not have ended from a victor being decided, but from one of the fighters getting exhausted, CJ being the most likely one.

_Damn, that guy seemed as if he had unlimited energy! But why did he stop the fight? He had me matched blow for blow, but ran off anyway. And he looked exactly like, sounded exactly like me, acted exactly like me. What the hell is going on?_ CJ thought, turning around.

His jaw dropped.

Murray was still held in a full nelson by his own doppelganger, Bentley had been knocked out the wheelchair by his, and the Kings were being blasted down by fireworks from their doppelgangers. Then, Murray's doppelganger knocked him out with a punch to the head. The Kings finally succumbed to the blasts of the fireworks and hit the ground next to Bentley and Murray. To make matters worse, Carmelita kicked the rooftop door in with Sly in tow. Seeing his old friend in a police uniform made CJ blink in disbelief.

"Freeze...! Ah, CJ. And the rest of the Cooper Gang. Why are you here? Trying to bring Sly back? I don't think so, because he prefers me over his stupid friends who'll eventually end up in bars for the rest of their lives or sent to the electric chair." Carmelita said.

"Carmelita. Yeah, we had it all planned out, but we got attacked. Have mercy on the others, come on. They're in no condition to-" CJ was saying. Sly spoke up next.

"CJ, don't make this any harder than it is." he walked up to CJ, who had his head down, and tried to put a hand on his shoulder. CJ smacked his ex-friend's hand away.

"There's something wrong with you, you know that? You dropped everything you, your friends, and your family stood for just so you could be with Carmelita and play cops and robbers! I oughtta slap the shit out of you for that. I think I just might." CJ raised a hand and brought it down across Sly's face. Sly held his head to the side with a shocked expression on his face. Carmelita ran up and pistol-whipped CJ with her shock pistol. The wolf stumbled back then, flew at her and wrestled the gun out of her hand. Sly jumped over CJ's head, pushed him away, and pulled out a shock pistol in his left hand and his family cane in the right.

"I'm sorry, CJ. I love Carmelita, and I won't let you hurt her. I just wish it didn't have to end up like this." the raccoon had furrowed eyebrows as he spoke.

"It's your fault to begin with. You should have known something like this would've happened, Sly. I'm gonna call up Penelope and we're leaving. Have a nice life, traitor." CJ tossed Carmelita, who had gotten back to her feet, her pistol, walked away, and was about to speak into his comm link, but a shock blast whizzed by him, sending a tingling sensation into his fur.

"You're not going anywhere, criminal." Carmelita had her pistol aimed at him when he looked over his shoulder.

"Wanna bet?" while he had the duo distracted, the rest of the gang had recuperated and had leapt off the building to the waiting chopper. CJ ran and jumped off the roof, grabbing the landing bar on the bottom of the chopper, and waved back to Carmelita and Sly. The raccoon had a forlorn look in his eyes. CJ felt pity and anger for his old friend. He pulled himself into the chopper.

"What the hell happened back there?" Bentley said, bewildered.

"Yeah, we were facing, like, clones!" Murray exclaimed.

"How much you wanna bet that it was DC's doing?" CJ asked them. They grew silent, finally grasping their situation.

_We're gonna have a hard time getting Coop back if we have to deal with those clones. _CJ thought as the helicopter flew over Britain.


End file.
